Cabinet nest



. June 19, 1928.

T c. CQLTRINA CABINET NEST 2 .T4 e e .n s vS ...u e e h S 3 7. 2 9 l l 52 u I n a JO INVENTOR.

A TTORNEYS June 19, 1928.

T c. coLTRlN CABINET lNEST :s sheets-sheet 3 Filed Jan. 5, 1927 Fig.

INVENTOR.

A TTORNEY-.

Patented June 19, 1928.

UNITED- star Voiiiriqiir Nns'r.

appciicanmi'sied Jnuary'is', 1927; serial No. 158,517.

My invention relates to nest structuresv for poultry. The principal object of the viriventionl is; to provide a compact' structure capable of housing' a plurality of nests, and which is easily kept clean and free from vermin. For this purpose convenient access'to the nests is provided, from the ,rear

of the cabinet structure, andthe nests proper are removableV therefrom, and areformed in suchy a mannen/to be described hereinV after, as to render them easy/to clean. u

Another object is to eliminate as far 'as possible, breakage ofveggs.. This is accom plished by providing. individual nest compartments, each with an entrancel apertureA of such a form as'to permit the hen, when occupying the nest, to protect hers/elf against the intrusion of other hens; by providing an entry platform so4 constructed that any eggs dropped upon'` it willnot roll ed; and by providing means for retaining the nest proper within its compartment, so that if the rear doorl 'bei opened, for the removal of eggs, while a hen is upon the nest, she the cannot, in her struggle to escape, kick nest out and so cause the eggs to fall upon the ground. -Eliminating breakage, vof course, not only directly increasesthe num-v ber ofeggs recovered, `but prevents th'eh/eris from becoming egg eaters and egg breakers.

A still further object of theinvention'y is,V

to prevent roosting in the nests or upon thev top of the cabinet, thus prevent-ing, toga large degree, the fouling of nestsV and cabi# net, and reducing the labor of cleaning and vermin extermination. and advantages will become apparent froml the following complete description of v'a preferred embodimentof the invention, which should be read with the understanding that the form, construction, and' arrangement of'the yseverall parts may be varied, within the limitsy of the claims hereto appended, without departing from thel spirit ofthe invention as set forth in saidc'laims With this in view, a preferred embodi ment of my invention Vwill now` be described fully with reference Ito' the *accompanying drawings, wherein: Y f

Fig. l is an end levation of a complete unit consisting of twosimilar cabinets'- with a common approach ladder` between them.

Fig. 9, is a front elevation 'of one cabinet v'vi'th theapproach ladder'.

@ther objects Y Fig. 3V isa part sectional' end: view of one nest compartment, taken on the line 3.-3 of Fig.,2 and enlarged, f l Y Fig. t is a` perspective detail of one com-` partmenty at the end of a cabinet, showing' the entrance aperture and one end ofthe entry rplatform with the supporting bracket therefor. i'

Fig. 5. is a plan view 4of one of the nest' frames, the lining beingy omitted, y

' Fig. 6 isa'section taken onthe line 6 -6 'TE y of Fig. 5 and showing the nest lining in".

position.. u l y v ,'Figs, 7 and 8 are yrespectively a planl and a section, the latter enlargedfof the nest' lining.

Fig. 9 is a detail, enlarged,'showing the methodVv of supporting the approach ladder.l v Although any desired number' of nest compartments may ybe provided in1 each cabi'-V net', l liavejfound it convenient and practicable to provide five ,horizontalY rovfs,.eacl`1' row having six compartmentsin each cabi'- net, as shown in F ig. 2. The referenceE numeral l designates the front w'allofthe cabinet 2 (F ig. 3) is its rear wall,l3 (Fig.

2)' designates its end' Walls, and fiv 5f i are'respectively, horizontal and 'v'ertica'lfin- .terior' partitibn's dividing. theV cabinet intol its thirty individual compartments Y y,

Each compartment is thus entirely shut offl from lits neighbors, and the'v joints between theseveral walls and partiti'ons'are so formed,l in" anyl suitable manner well known in the cabinetmaking art, as'lt'o-be not only rigid, but tight, to encl'ude vermin and' dirt. The siz'e'ofeach compartment" is such that it wil-l just acconnnodateone lien comfortably, preferably about l()` inches wide .by Il incliesdee'p by `l3viiicheshigih;

The entireV cabinet isV snimonnted by yaV sloping roof 6, Figs'. 1,2' and' 3,".t'o'shed' rain and to preventfowl fromroosting upon' its top.V At. the apex of said'roof'isnioiinted, in pivots 7, a rotatable bar .8, havinga double cam shaped cross'rsection, to prevent roosting upon said apex, This shape, l' have found by experience, ismuch` more' effective that 'a round or other shape'dbar inut'hrowing olf a fowl attempting tofr'oost uponfit, because it not' only' gives noffo'ot-hold lupon itself, but prevents the fowlfroin gaining a foot-hold uponthe upper' edgeslofthe roof members 6. y'These upper edgesare preferably slightly spaced, las shown inFig,`

3, to provide ventilat-ion for the space ben tween the roof 6 and the uppermost hori- Each compartment has an entrance aperture 10, Figs. 2, 3 and 4, in the front wall 1 of the cabinet. I have foundL by experience that these apertures are best 'made approximately oval in shape, with their major axes approximately vertical, as indicatedfor the reason that such shape provides Vfree entrance to the nest, and yet permits the hen, when occupying the nest, to best protect r herself and her nest against the intrusion of other hens. This protection is secured because the hen sits'upon the nest with her head within or slightly protruding from the upper portion of the aperture, and is therew fore in the best lposition to tight oit intruders.

In front of each horizontal row of compartments is an entry shelf or Vplatform 11,l

Y Figs. 1, 2, 3, and 1, upon which the hen stands before entering the nest.

' forms are provided with raised marginal flanges or rims 12, Figs. 3 and il, which preventany eggs that 'may be dropped upon the platforms, by hens waiting to enter nests, from rolling off and breaking. The platforms 11 are hinged so that theyV can be folded up against the front 1 ofthe cabinet,

as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1. In thisV foldedV position, the platforms partially cover the entrance apertures 10, suliiciently to keep vhens from entering. Thus the platforms 11 serve as doors Atoexclude the fowl at night,`to prevent them from roosting in the nests, and to close oit anyrow or rows of nests vfor any other'purpose. l

`The platforms 11 are preferably mounted in brackets 13, Figs. 1 and 4, secured to andy f extending forwardly from the cabinet ends 3. Y These brackets are best formed of metal,

and each is providedfwith a notch 111, Fig.

4,in which the pivot pin 15 of the platform -rests, and with laterally'projecting flanges 16 and 17 bearing respectively against Vthe bottom and top'of said platform to hold it cleaning or painting.

A "suitablefladder is provided toenable i. the fowl to reach any platform, such ladder l ril being preferably an inclined runway' 18, Figs. 1 and 2, providedwitlrspaced cleats 19, and Aextending diagonally across the front-of t-he entire cabinet from the ground to` the highest platform 11. In order to permit the use of single ladder common to two cabinets, I prefer to arrange the cabinets in pairs, face to face, as shown in Fig. 1, with the ladder 18 between their platforms 11( `Thus any platform, and consequently any nest, of either cabinet, can be reached i by one ladder. lA convenient mounting for the ladder 18 is shown in Figs. 1, 2, and 9, and comprises bars 20`exte`nding horizontally between and secured to the ends of the two cabinets of the pair.` One such bar is positioned near the ground at one end of the cabinets, and the other at the opposite ends at about the level of the highest platform 11. ladder 18 is notched on its under sideas shown at 21 in F ig. 9, to fit over the bars 20. Thus the ladder is easily ren'iovable, but is held securely when in position.' The bars 2O serve not only as supports-for the ladder, butas braces between the two cabinets of the pair, to hold them in the desired relative positions. v Y

The rear wall 2 of the cabinet is provided with suitable doors, through which access may be had to the nests for removal of eggs and for cleaning. I'prefer to make 'such doors as shown at 22 in Figs. 2 and 3, one at each horizontal row of compartments and extending the fullv length of the' cabinet. They are best hinged at the bottom, as shown at 23 in Fig. 3, and open outwardly to form, when open, horizontal shelves at the levels of Vthe/compartment floors, as indicated in dotted lines. Suitable stop brackets or devices, of any well known form as indicated, for example, at 24, may b e employed to hold the doors in their open horizontal positions. Suitable latching means, not shown, may

also be provided to keep the doors closed.`

The nests proper, which lit within and are removable from the compartments of the cabinet, are formed as bottomless frames 25 having saucer-shaped depressions26 in their tops, as shown in Figs. '3, 5, and 6, andsaid depressions are provided with suitable padded linings 27 (Fig. 6) to be described presently. The nest frames 25 are best made by die stamping from sheet metal, and are formed with vertically disposed side and rear flanges 28, cut away as shown at The 29 to permit ventilation, and with a front.v

flange 30 having a straight bottom edge. A notch or slot '31. is formed in said front flange, and is adapted to nt over a suitable hook 32, Fig. 3v extending from the front wall of the compartmentfforthe purpose of holding the frame inl place. Thus Vthe frame cannot be kicked outr the rear door by the hen in her struggle to escape through the front aperture .10.

The frame is easily removed for cleaning, however, merely by lifting it slightly at its front, to free it from'the hook 32, andthen drawing it out rearwardly onto the shelf formed by the open door-.22.` The front flange of said frame aets as a scraper to remove dirt from the floor of the compartment, such dirt falling through the `crack formed between the rear wall and the open door 22. Thus removal of the frame automatically cleans the bottom of the compartment.

The nest frame 25 is preferably made about two andone half inches high,'and thc depression 26 in its top is about two inches deep, leaving an air spaceof about one half inch between it and the floor of the compartment. The bottom of'said depression is ventilated, preferably by a series of punched hol-es 33. The pad 27, which lines the depression 2S, is preferably formed of two layers of suitable fabric such as canvas, with a layer of excelsior or other suitable padding between, as indicated in Fig. 8, and the whole suitably bound together, as by the stitching indicated atV 36 in Fig. 7. The lining 27 may be held in position on the frame in any desired manner, as for example by providing it with holes 37, Fig. 7, which fit over tongues 38, Figs. 5 and 6, stamped out and bent upwardly from the top of the frame 25.

The nest thus formed is simple, inexpensive, and easily kept clean. By making the frame 25 as a stamping from suitable sheet metal, as for example steel subsequently gal-A vanized, it can be disinfected readily, and is light and easy to handle. The pad or lining 27 can be removed quickly for cleaning, disinfecting, or renewal, and can be reversed when one side becomes soiled.

I claim l. In a nest structure for poultry, a. cabinet divided into a. plurality of y separate compartments arranged in a substantially horizontal row, each compartment having ank entrance aperture in its front wall; an entry platform common to all said apertures; a raised flange formed upon the outer-edge portion of said platform; and pivotal mountings for said platform adapting it to partially close said apertures.

2. In a nest structure for poultry, a cab inet having a nest compartment with an entrance aperture; a door in a wall of said compartment, said door forming, when open, a substantially horizontal shelf at the approximate level of the floor of said compartment; and a nest within said compartment and adapted for removal therefrom on to said shelf.

3. In a nest structure for poultry, a cabinet having a nest compartment with an enyrance aperture; a door in a. wall of said compartment, said door forming, when open, a

substantially horizontal shelf at the approximate level of the floor of said compartment;

al nest within said compartment and adapted for removal Vtherefrom on to said shelf;` and means for removably retaining said nest in said compartment.

4C. In a nest structure for poultry, a cabinet having a nest compartment with an entrance aperture; a door in a wall of said coinpartment, said door forming, when open, a

. substantially horizontal shelf at the approximate level of thefloor of said compartment; and a nest within said compartment and adapted for removal therefrom on to said shelf, said nest having ailange positionedto removably positioned within Vsaid compartment, said nest comprising side flanges resting upon the bottom of said `compartment and a top member supported by said flanges and provided with a depressed and perforated central portion.

7.' In a nest structure for poultry, a cabinet having a nest compartment; and a nest removably positioned within said eompart me'nt, said nest being formed from a single sheet of metal with its edge portions bent downwardly to form flanges adapted to rest upon the floor of the compartment and with a depression in its central top portion.

8. In a nest structure for poultry, a cab-V inet Vhaving a nest compartment; a nest frame removably positioned within said comparti ment, said frame comprising side flanges resting upon the bottom of said compartment and a top member supported by said flanges and provided with a depression; and a removable resilient lining positioned withlin said depression.

9. A nest structure for poultry comprising a cabinet; a roof therefor, saidroof having a Ventilating aperture and a. freely rotatable bar positioned above the Ventilating aperture of said roof. n l0. A nest structure for poultry comprising a. cabinet; a hip-roof therefor, said roof having a Ventilating aperture at its ridge; and a freely rotatable bar mounted above said aperture and substantially parallel to the ridge of said roof. i v

In testimony whereofI have signed my naine to this specification. f T CHARLES COLTRIN. 

